Untitled - Kelly Walsh High School

Aqueous Solutions 55
Quick Tip
Certain oxides can have acidic or basic properties. Many oxides of metals that
have a 1 or 2 charge are basic oxides because they will react with water to
form a basic solution:
Na 2O(s) H 2O(l) l 2 NaOH(aq)
Many nonmetal oxides are acidic oxides because they react with water to form
an acidic solution:
CO 2(g) H 2O(l) l H 2CO 3(aq)
H 2CO 3(aq) is named carbonic acid and is one of the reasons that most carbonated
beverages are slightly acidic. It is also the reason that soft drinks have fizz,
because this carbonic acid can easily revert to carbon dioxide and water.
In general, acids react with bases to form water and a salt. The salt will depend
upon what acid and base are used:
HCl(aq) NaOH(aq) l H2O(l) NaCl(aq)
HNO3(aq) KOH(aq) l H2O(l) KNO3(aq) The salt will always contain a cation from the base and an anion from the acid.
Reactions of this type are neutralization reactions.
Acids will also react with carbonates and acid carbonates (hydrogen carbonates,
HCO 3 – ) to form carbonic acid, which then decomposes to carbon dioxide
and water:
2 HCl(aq) Na 2CO 3(aq) l 2 NaCl(aq) H 2CO 3(aq)
b
CO 2(g) H 2O(l)